New Orchids Arrived - Toss Them??

[PlumCrazy]

Hello Everyone,

I just received four orchids that I ordered online. I have never ordered an orchid online, and maybe never will again I am worried that 3 may have to be tossed. Please let me know what you think. Hopefully I am just being an alarmist.

Plant one: Ondontonia Irene "Big Momma". Arrived 75% mush. It does have flowers, and the bulb that is flowering looks fine.

Plant two: Banfieldara Gilded Tower "Mysic Maze". Has very nice flowers, but has black spots on leaves that worry me.

Plant three: Ondontocidium Everglades Elegance "Nancy Lee". Looks generally ok, also but has spots on the bulbs and leaves, which makes me more worried that the spots are disease.

Any opinions on what the spots are or advice on how to proceed? The plants in quarantine are in a different room from the rest of my orchids, and are a little apart from each other. I have named the pics to show which plant is which number.

[Roberta]

First, communicate with the seller. "Online" is no excuse... there are some wonderful vendors (check the Vendor Feedback forum) that sell exceptional plants. If there is viable new growth there is hope - if you can't get satisfaction from the vendor. I'd be concerned about the raised black areas, possibly an insect infestation. Keep these new plants away from any other orchids that you have, and if possible away from each other until you can figure out what is going on.

[DirtyCoconuts]

the above is good advice...i would look at the roots as well.

if it were me, first thing is done, good pics and then contact the seller.
I would want a refund and never look back.

If the situation results in you having the orchids then i would consider getting a pack of single use razor blades (thanks, Roberta) and a jar of cinnamon and use one blade per cut, then dust with cinnamon and then let it dry out for a day.

id remove anything mushy but i would not be too worried about the spots..i have stuff all around that chews on my plants that looks like that BUT i would also not tell you it is nothing because you might not want bugs of any kind INSIDE your house.

you can do my advice and then also do a dawn cleaning after the plant dries out a bit to settle most bug issues ( at least initially, takes a few baths for some bugs)

[PlumCrazy]

Thanks to both of you for the advice. To clarify, since you can't tell from the pics, the black spots on Plant 2 are pitted, not raised.

Anyway, I'm contacting the seller. AND, I probably won't be putting them in with my other orchids because I just read a post under the vendor section where someone said their "Hawaiian Special" orchids from Seattle Orchids were contaminated with viruses, which is exactly what these are Very sad as I like the Mystic Maze very much.

Another question: How high is the risk of contamination if I keep the orchids, pretty much assuming they have viruses, in the house? They are in a different room, but it would be so sad if all of my orchids got sick.

In happier news, my sister surprised me with a little orchid on a stick from Andy's which coincidentally also arrived today. (She knew I had to miss my planned trip to Hausermann's because of the Corona virus.) It's in perfect condition and has new growth on it. It is being quarantined in a separate area

[Keysguy]

above input is all good.
I think that first one that's mushy looks like it got too chilled. Was that possible from point of origin to destination? How long were they in transit?

[Roberta]

With regard to virus, it's mostly contagious with the exchange of fluids (plants don't sneeze...) so if you practice good hygiene with the plants, they are unlikely to infect anything else. That means, no water-sharing. Make sure that they don't drip on other plants. If you repot, use those single-edge single-use razor blades and throw them away after use on a single plant. Protect surface on which you put the unpotted plant - layers of newspaper work well, throw away betweeen plants, use fresh paper for each one. Wash hands well after handling the plants and before handling anything else. (disposable gloves are good too - belt and suspenders - but hand-washing is vital... you're doing that anyway, right?)

[PlumCrazy]

Originally Posted by Keysguy

above input is all good.
I think that first one that's mushy looks like it got too chilled. Was that possible from point of origin to destination? How long were they in transit?

They went from the West Coast to the Midwest, which took a couple of days and involved a flight. I did order a heat pack. It was not warm when it arrived.

[Roberta]

Originally Posted by PlumCrazy

They went from the West Coast to the Midwest, which took a couple of days and involved a flight. I did order a heat pack. It was not warm when it arrived.

I also wonder about the heat pack that the vendor used... a fresh one should stay warm for 72 hours (3 days), which should be plenty of time for Priority Mail.

[PlumCrazy]

Originally Posted by Roberta

With regard to virus, it's mostly contagious with the exchange of fluids (plants don't sneeze...) so if you practice good hygiene with the plants, they are unlikely to infect anything else. That means, no water-sharing. Make sure that they don't drip on other plants. If you repot, use those single-edge single-use razor blades and throw them away after use on a single plant. Protect surface on which you put the unpotted plant - layers of newspaper work well, throw away betweeen plants, use fresh paper for each one. Wash hands well after handling the plants and before handling anything else. (disposable gloves are good too - belt and suspenders - but hand-washing is vital... you're doing that anyway, right?)

Don't usually use new brand new razor blades, but will now if I keep these. Already sterilize tools, surfaces, hands between plants. These were meant to go in the new orchidarium I built, so I guess that is out. Which means I have to find a place to put them, and decluttering the house of plants was part of the point of the case, not to mention LOWER maintenance... *sigh*

[Leafmite]

Ordering online doesn't need to result in disappointment. Here are some very good vendors that will not disappoint you: Hausermann's, Andy's Orchids, Gold Country Orchids, Sunset Valley Orchids, Al's Orchid Greenhouse, Logees, Ct. (They sell all kinds of plants but also some orchids). Hope this helps!